Leigh Manson and Simon McMenemy are both Scottish head coaches who currently ply their trade for two of the biggest teams in the United Football League (UFL). Their last names also begin with the 13th letter of the alphabet. Kidding aside, the similarities simply do not end there. the two men from the north of Great Britain will aim to lead their teams to glory, albeit at the expense of the other in tomorrow’s massive clash for the upper hand in the race for second place.
Chasing the bridesmaid never sounded this important but the ramifications surrounding it underlined its significance. There is a possibility of Ceres-La Salle winning both the league and the cup, meaning the second-best team in the UFL may be awarded a trip to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup. En route to a hugely vital game on Wednesday, both Manson and Mcmenemy steered their squads to gutsy victories over two doesn’t teams. Manson witnessed Global dig deep late to claim a 2-0 triumph versus Green Archers United last Saturday. About 24 hours later, the Sparks dealt Manila Jeepney with the identical score line. As a result, both teams stayed level on points in the league table with Global leading only due to goal difference.
Manson expressed delight even if the title was officially of lost before they even kicked off against Green Archers United. So, for him to end the day with a win just salvaged a bit of pride for Global. “I think motivation was a big factor. We’ve come through in the end,” following up that the result is more important than anything else. We achieved what we set out and that was a clean sheet and three points.” Manson would honestly not mind if they can repeat the same feat over the Loyola Meralco Sparks.
As for Loyola’s man at the helm, beating Global is integral to their aspirations of finishing the league in the best place possible. It would put Loyola three points above of Global and will only be required not to lose their last league match against Green Archers United to seal the trivially coveted second spot. “It’s just going to be a battle where we have to win it. We have to take points off them to take second place,” McMenemy declared. Aware of the difficulty of such situation, the Sparks’ Scottish mastermind witnessed how Global labored to get three points. They also faced a similar situation so he definitely reckons that his team is prepared for a no-holds-barred encounter.
Filled with quality players and excellent strategists, the Global-Loyola match offers excitement to the fans of the sport, particularly those of the said teams. With more pride at stake, the managers know the importance of such match. Armed with bravery their homeland is known for, Manson and McMenemy are entrusted to lead their squads to victory. At the end of the day, one of them will surely be happier than the other. — LGT
